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rfmcdonaldI agree entirely with the thrust of the changes to police biking described in Bernard Weil's article in the Toronto Star.
If bikes are ever to be integrated into Toronto's transit strategies, they and their drivers have to be integrated into the legal surround for transit. This, naturally, includes civil and criminal sanctions for bad driving, and the enforcement of laws against said.
It's a matter of equity. Is the large non-biking majority of the Torontonian electorate going to support the enfranchisement of bikes if they and their drivers get to do whatever they want?
But no, the short-sighted Toronto Cyclists Union is opposed to it.
If you can't bike safely, don't bike at pedestrians' expense with the excuse that you shouldn't have to compromise your behaviour. If you can't find an alternative route, don't bike. (Or bike, and be a prick.)
Moves to keep bicycles off sidewalks have been in the works for months, but they are too late for a Toronto pedestrian who died this week after being hit by a cyclist.
Nobu Okamoto, 74, was struck by a 33-year-old cyclist on Finch Ave. W. near Sentinel Rd. on Aug. 4. The cyclist remained at the scene and was fined, police said. The fine for cycling on the sidewalk in North York is $3.75.
Had the accident occurred downtown, the ticket would have been $90 as bylaws still differ across the city more than 10 years after amalgamation.
“It’s an anomaly that’s been allowed to fester . . . it doesn’t make sense,” said Brian Patterson, president of the Ontario Safety League. “We have to have a working set of regulations that are consistent and fair.”
Patterson said cycling on the sidewalk has become “a huge issue” in cities across the province within the last five years. But the laws governing it are inconsistent and moves to update them have been slow.
“There isn’t enough teeth in the law,” said Sgt. Angelo Costa, the traffic sergeant in 31 Division where the incident occurred. “All I can do is stop a cyclist, he has to identify himself to me and I can give him a ticket. There isn’t anything else . . . that’s going to change his behaviour.”
If bikes are ever to be integrated into Toronto's transit strategies, they and their drivers have to be integrated into the legal surround for transit. This, naturally, includes civil and criminal sanctions for bad driving, and the enforcement of laws against said.
Cyclists cannot be charged with dangerous driving under the Criminal Code — that offence only covers motorized vehicles.
It's a matter of equity. Is the large non-biking majority of the Torontonian electorate going to support the enfranchisement of bikes if they and their drivers get to do whatever they want?
But no, the short-sighted Toronto Cyclists Union is opposed to it.
“We really ought to consider whether the (Highway Traffic Act) is stringent enough on penalties for carelessness, and that goes for cyclists and drivers,” said Toronto Cyclists Union advocacy director Andrea Garcia.
She said she supports increasing fines for sidewalk cycling, but only if they are accompanied by measures to make roads safer for cyclists, such as more bike lanes.
“A lot of cyclists will tell you that they feel extremely unsafe on the road and therefore they choose to bike on the sidewalk,” she said. “That ends up creating a second set of problems.”
If you can't bike safely, don't bike at pedestrians' expense with the excuse that you shouldn't have to compromise your behaviour. If you can't find an alternative route, don't bike. (Or bike, and be a prick.)
